FF’s CPAC Straw Poll: GOProud Wins

While much of the focus at CPAC focused on the official straw poll results, FrumForum decided to do its own straw poll of the attendees and their view on the inclusion of gay conservative group GOProud at CPAC.

We found that despite the recent controversy of the inclusion of GOProud, most conference attendees supported the group’s presence.

Out of a survey of 50 CPAC attendees, thirty-one (62%) supported the inclusion of GOProud at the conference, and only three (6%) opposed the group’s presence. Five respondents had never heard of the group (10%), and eleven had no opinion (22%).

CPAC attracted a large young population that seemed to have more liberal social values and conservative economic values. As the official CPAC straw poll showed, 49% of CPAC attendees were between the ages of 18-25.

Concerning GOProud, conservatives from all over the country were tolerant of sexuality, as long as the group inhabited conservative values.

“I think CPAC has traditionally selected on groups based on ideology, not on sexual preference, and so I think we need to get back to bringing in groups based on their ideas, not on what they do in their private lives,” said Patrick Coyle of Virginia.

“I’m all in favor of it – I think the Republican Party should be an umbrella party. Just because some people are gay doesn’t mean you should kick them out of the party. If the Republican Party wants to come back into power, we should be an umbrella party,” said Josh from Pennsylvania.

“Our rights don’t come to us because we belong to one group or another, but they come to us as individuals. So they have the same rights as anyone else. So their opinions should be represented here. And the idea that people are boycotting because of it [makes no sense]. They should be here to counter their arguments. Embrace them, don’t belittle them or antagonize them. Let them have their peace and present your own piece at the same time,” said Drew, of Georgia.

“I’m for inclusion of as many different constituencies as possible, and I don’t think it’s our position to judge people – I believe that’s God’s place. So we should embrace the people. Love the sinner, hate the sin, so to speak,” said Brenda who came to CPAC from Florida.

“If you’re really going to be conservative and have those Christian-based right wing values, we’re gonna welcome people of all makes, models, and races,” noted Kelly of Michigan.

Attendees opposed to the inclusion of GOProud at CPAC held their opinions not based on the sexuality of the group’s members, but the boycotting actions of the group.

“On the one hand, I really don’t care in terms of their position on gay marriage, but GOProud has done a huge disservice to the conservative movement by personally attacking politicians with whom it disagrees. I’m also disappointed that their headline singer was someone who was a major Hilary supporter in 2008. That’s completely hypocritical,” said Steven Irtwell from Colorado.

“I personally don’t support their inclusion per say, but I also don’t support groups like the Heritage Foundation and others that are boycotting or not participating this year. I think we need to be cohesive and focus on defeating Obama in 2012 and expressing different parts of conservatism that may or may not be consistent with GOProud’s message. But regardless of their inclusion, I think other groups that consider themselves conservatives should be here and participate,” said Bradis from Massachusetts.

While there are conservatives who oppose GOProud based on their sexuality preferences, many CPAC attendees were not bothered by this. Indeed, it seems as if social standpoint of the conservative movement has shifted dramatically – a fact reinforced by the CPAC official straw poll results showing only 9% of attendees identifying social conservative issues as their core principles.

“I think a lot of people still call themselves conservatives that aren’t really socially conservative,” said CPAC-goer Buffy from Illinois.

You don’t understand. You don’t do polls to find out what people think. You do polls to control what people think. The trick is to never ask a question unless you already know how it will be answered. This poll was well done.

“While there are conservatives who oppose GOProud based on their sexuality preferences, many CPAC attendees were not bothered by this. Indeed, it seems as if social standpoint of the conservative movement has shifted dramatically – a fact reinforced by the CPAC official straw poll results showing only 9% of attendees identifying social conservative issues as their core principles.”

Now- work on those over 40s plus! I don’t see the next “conservative candidate” admitting this. There are too many old foggies holding on to the past. Some of the Republican celebrities have a fan club from (On Golden Pond).

This is all good and well, but when it comes right down to it, it means nothing. None of the likely GOP candidates for president support marriage equality (one or two might support civil unions, but that’s doubtful) and at least one (Pawlenty) is actually calling for the repeal of the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell. No matter how you slice it, this is still a party that sees gay people as second class citizens — assuming they even see them at all.

I, for one, found the article interesting. The results of a straw poll are worth noting. Not worth betting on the next presidential election over, but certainly note worthy.

This is not like taking a poll in a bar to see how many people abstain. It is like take a poll of voters to see who they liked – and then claiming that it does not matter because the poll does not include people who did not vote.

This was a poll of activists who show up. In political parties, showing up is a big deal.

Right . . . meaning they wern’t opposed to GOProud. So of the people not opposed to GOProud, the polling found that they wern’t opposed to GOProud.
The point is, you’re starting with a biased sample. Well, technically you’re not starting with a biased sample . . . your sample is “people who would attend CPAC even if GOProud is included”. The mistake is trying to extrapolate that into “this poll reflects the feelings of all Conservatives or Republicans. Since we know that there are Conservatives that didn’t attend specifically because of GOProud, this poll, by its very design, doesn’t include their opinions, and the implied meaning of the article is that the straw poll can hint at the broader Conservative movement.
This is a poll of those at CPAC . . . nothing more. How relevant is it to the broader discussion? Well, how many of CPACs “Straw Poll for President” winners have gone on to get the nomination?

Sorry, dug, but while what you say makes sense within the context you provided, the author goes well beyond that with lines like this: “Concerning GOProud, conservatives from all over the country were tolerant of sexuality, as long as the group inhabited conservative values.”

I would’ve liked to see the ages of those polled because in my travels, age is a much greater indicator of tolerance (within any group) than any other factor, with , of course, the younger respondents being the more tolerant.

“” As the official CPAC straw poll showed, 49% of CPAC attendees were between the ages of 18-25.”"

What’s worth noting is many of the attendees were very young. And thankfully the young tend to be more blind with respect to sexual preference.

From anecdotal information, more young people seem to be gravitating to the left which better reflects their personal beliefs. In fact I find it surprising so many young people attended the CPAC gathering. I don’t know their usual mix, but were many ‘oldsters’ put off from attending this year because of the presence of GOProud?

As others have said, this is a very small, very skewed sampling. If anything, it simply bolsters the call that Frum and other reasonable conservatives have sounded for the GOP to listen to young conservatives and their tolerance in forming social policy.

What will Americans accept next into their social policy? Pedophilia is reasonably next. All you need to do is to publish a few articles here and there explaining that it’s only natural, have a pedophile bit up by some haters and make it national news. The more gays are accepted in America the closer it gets to its end. Still, most think it’s the new liberal world where nothing can go wrong. Yeh, in your drug induced dreams.

No, that is not Libertarian. Conservative and Libertarian economic values are quite distinct. And liberal social values is not just smoke pot and have sex with whoever you want, if anything libertarian social values are even more antithetical to liberals than Conservative values. Liberals are more than willing to work with Conservative faith based organizations to advance progressive causes, such as S-Chip.

From what I can tell, conservatives have a very different view of economics as well as social issues from libertarians. Conservatives like to talk like libertarians but look at what happened when when the right controlled all three branches of government for 6 years. Was that anything like libertarian fiscal policy?

Why is there a C in CPAC again? Let me get this right: The same mob who voted for GOProud’s inclusion also voted for soft-on-Islamism Ron Paul in the Presidential straw poll. I’d say we have a psychology study in the making. Just bizarre.

“The same mob who voted for GOProud’s inclusion also voted for soft-on-Islamism Ron Paul in the Presidential straw poll. I’d say we have a psychology study in the making. Just bizarre.” The only psychology study is in your bizarre view that somehow being against the first Amendment (free practice of religion which includes Islam) or being against people who are born gay is somehow Conservative. No, I think you are thinking it should be Facist Pac, might I suggest the KKK for the likes of you?

And I love your term “mob” are you even familiar with the English language? Obviously you are a troll so perhaps the intricacies of human language have escaped you. People voting do not constitute a “mob.”

Here, I will help you, here are a few definitions of mob, none of which includes your own:
a disorderly or riotous crowd of people.
a crowd bent on or engaged in lawless violence.
a criminal gang, especially one involved in drug trafficking, extortion, etc.

I’m no fan of Ron Paul, at least he’s consistent. He isn’t personally for gay rights, but doesn’t think it’s the government’s business telling people how to conduct their personal business. How is he soft on “Islamism”? Because he’s not for stripping individuals of rights without due process or invading foreign countries who pose no immediate threat to us? Again, you can disagree with his positions (I often do) but he IS a libertarian, not just when it’s convenient (as in, when it sounds good) and votes that way.

talkradio: I’d be more inclined towards libertarianism if someone could explain to me how it wouldn’t eventually result in a totalitarian corporate state. And none of that “the market will magically figure it out” mumbo jumbo either.

For all idiot liberal progressives who believe that Government must tell them what to do, I will explain how Free Market Capitalism cannot result in a totalitarian corporate state.
Because it’s not designed to, moron. You’ve been leaving under this free market system and your parents were and their parents and their parents. And America has grown into the Superpower and America has been doing great up untill a Muslim Socialist moron was installed by Soros to take it down so he can profit on crisis. Who are you to question the Free Market Capitalism? What makes your generation of stupid liberal progressives smarter than your parents generation? What makes you smarter than the Founding Fathers, than the generations before you? What? The fact that your president is an Anti-American or the fact that you accept gays and hate christianity? Or the fact that your girlfriend abort her white children for the sake of the Earth? Or the fact that you’ve been on drugs most of your life? Your parents most likely weren’t on drugs so they didn’t ask such moronic questions… Does it occur to you that only 15 years ago you was smoking pot and was living your psuedo-intellectual life without even thinking about the economy, jobs, Socialism, Healthcare etc. simply because … the free market capitalism made all that possible for you … and now you’re questioning it because it’s popular between your liberal kind … hahaha. The country of morons is the USA.

I am very disappointed that I have been completely excluded from this year’s Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) being held this week in Washington, DC. I have emailed you and other officials with CPAC numerous times over the past two months in an attempt to meet with you during previous trips to Washington to discuss my inclusion. I never heard back.

I have been actively involved in Republican politics for over three decades, and have worked on nine Republican Presidential campaigns including senior consulting roles for Presidents Reagan, George H. W. Bush and Gerald Ford. Additionally, I have managed dozens of local, state and federal elections.

A major profile of me just appeared in the Washington Post last Thursday, the first one of any prospective 2012 Republican candidates for President: CLICK HERE

I was the first to announce that I was seriously considering running for President on April 10, 2010 at a press conference at the Southern Republican Leadership Conference in New Orleans.

I was the first to set up a Presidential Exploratory Committee back on July 18, 2010.

I was the first to run commercials on television in New Hampshire and Iowa beginning in September of last year.

Good Morning New Hampshire ran for one week statewide

Independence Day ran for one week statewide

I have travelled from my home in California to New Hampshire 11 times and Iowa 5 during the last 11 months.

I was the first to hire an Iowa State Director for my Presidential Exploratory Committee on December 1, 2010 and the first to bring on two coordinators in New Hampshire last fall.

I have arguably shown the most interest of any possible 2012 Presidential candidate as I test the waters like all others.

When looking at CPAC’s chockfull schedule it seems like everyone who has shown the slightest interest of running in 2012 has a seat at the table. You have even invited Herman Cain to speak at CPAC, a brand new name being discussed.

I cannot help but think that I have been excluded solely because I happen to be gay.

I Was Even Turned Down for a Booth in the Exhibition Hall
In mid-December I spoke to Joseph Logue, your deputy at CPAC to make the necessary arrangements to at least rent a booth in the Exhibition Hall. Mr. Logue was very happy at that time to rent me one, and indicated that there would not be a problem. He took my application and credit card information via fax on December 21, 2010 right after we spoke .

Here’s his email from December 20, 2010 asking me to apply for a booth.

The little urchins at CPAC are not only unrepresentative of conservatives but of Republicans. Most are young college boys who have few responsibilities. Most are not married or have children or make mortgage payments. When these kiddies grow up, perhaps their views should be taken more seriously. Until then, the views of CPAC attendees aren’t any more valid than any other sort of brat.